Pete Hegseth's Holy Speech

The war in Iran began on February 28, 2026, when the United States and Israel launched a joint strike campaign targeting Iranian leadership and military assets. On March 1, the Silver Bulletin recorded net approval of minus 12 percentage points, the lowest initial approval for a war in American history.

The Military Religious Freedom Foundation reported more than 200 complaints from military personnel about statements made by commanders. One commander described the Iran war as “part of God’s divine plan” to usher in the return of Jesus Christ. He went on to claim that Trump was “anointed by Jesus” to “cause Armageddon.”

Hegseth has held a monthly Pentagon worship service since May 2025. Since the Iran war began, Hegseth has offered prayers about the war such as “let every round find its mark.” According to the Associated Press, Doug Wilson, a self-proclaimed Christian nationalist, preached at the monthly service in February. In April, Hegseth led the service and read a passage he said reflected the Bible’s Ezekiel 25:17. Actually, the passage was adapted from the movie Pulp Fiction.

Hegseth has previously linked religious beliefs to military force. The tattoo on his right arm reads “Deus vult,” or “God wills it” in Latin. He describes it as a Crusader battle cry. The Crusades were a series of wars waged by Western Europeans during the medieval period to reclaim the Holy Land. In Hegseth’s book, American Crusade, he urges Americans to “thank a Crusader” for many features of the modern West.

Apparently, we can now “thank a Crusader” for something else as well: the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the resulting increase in gasoline prices.